It’s a bit odd that the only highball listed specifically is the Amer Picon Highball. Maybe because it includes Grenadine? In any case, this is pretty much exactly a Picon Punch.

What exactly is a Picon Punch? Well, to quote Chuck Taggart, “It’s the most popular cocktail in Bakersfield, California. Why, you may ask? I did, and looked it up — it ‘s the “national drink” of the Basque people, and there are lots of Euskadi folk and Basque restaurants in B’field (known otherwise only for Buck Owens’ place and for being the hometown of a lot of people I know who couldn’t wait to move to L.A.)”

So feel free to order one in Bakersfield, Reno, or even San Francisco. I have to admit I did not see anyone drinking them when we visited the Basque country in Spain, though.

Why am I using Amer CioCiaro instead of Amer Picon? The big reason is, I just don’t have any. I do have Torani Amer, but I have to admit that the rather rubbing alcohol-esque nose on Torani Amer always puts me off. But back to Amer Ciociaro, about a million years ago, Mr. David Wondrich, (aka Splificator) took it upon himself to taste through all the considerable Amari he had in his closet to find the one closest to vintage Amer Picon. He documented this on eGullet: A Bitter Truth

Not too long ago, our own Scratchline was generous enough to give me a half-bottle of the original, 78-proof Picon (thanks again!). The other day, I rummaged through the various hidey-holes where I keep my aperitifs and amari and rounded up enough to do a comparative tasting, Amer Picon against the world.
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After much nosing and not a little tasting, the closest match in aroma and taste proved to be the 60-proof Amaro Ciociaro. Now, it’s not a perfect match (it’s a little more herbal), and admittedly 60 proof isn’t the same as 78 proof, but it does a great job of evoking the clean orange notes of the old Picon without being nearly as watery as the new Picon. Plus it avoids the vegetal notes of the Torani, which are entirely absent in the old Picon.

So when Mrs. Flannestad took a trip to NY, one of the things I tasked her with was finding a bottle of the stuff. Little did I know she would trek all the way to the now legendary LeNell’s in Brooklyn to find it. I knew there was a reason I married her!

In any case, such fortitude is no longer necessary in California, as Amaro CioCiaro is now distributed here and carried in San Francisco by Cask and K&L Wines. Cask, in particular, seems hell bent on resurrecting the amazing array of bitter substances previously seen only at the late lamented LeNell’s.

By the way, there’s no particular reason you couldn’t make a Highball with just about any Amer or Amaro, leaving out the sweetener if they are already particularly sweet. In fact, Amaro Montenegro is another one pretty close to Amer Picon. Though, now that I think about it, Fernet Branca Highball anyone? Rick? Angostura Highball? Dion? Jaegermeister Highball? Jeffrey?

This post is one in a series documenting my ongoing effort to make all of the drinks in the Savoy Cocktail Book, starting at the first, Abbey, and ending at the last, the, uh, Sauterne Cup.